Robin's Blog for Dauphin Island

Dauphin Island Property Owners Association
P.O. Box 39 (251)861-2433 or (251)861-422
Dauphin Island, AL 36528 dipoaoffice@skyynett.com

February/March 2010 Newsletter

Don’t despair, Spring will arrive-- it always has. I know I’m ready for some warmer weather and I promise not to complain when it gets to be 95 degrees and 95 percent humidity. We had a good turn-out at the February meeting and had good discussion around several issues. We continue to attempt to schedule meetings at convenient times—you’ll notice that we alternate between weekend days and week nights to try to accommodate diverse schedules. I would appreciate suggestions for other times that may work better—just send me an email. Here are a few items of current interest.

Bingo! As most probably are now aware, the POA--and the Town--were approached a few weeks back with a proposal to bring legal bingo to the island and to place the operation, at least initially, at the Isle Dauphine Club. The idea had some merit—the operator would provide needed repairs and upgrades to the facility, the POA would receive rental income, and the Town would receive a revenue stream which would be earmarked for funding ongoing shoreline restoration. In addition, the general level of economic activity would likely increase. The POA Board agreed to consider a short term lease of the building for this purpose pending the Town’s passing an ordinance, etc. While the deal didn’t come together at this time, the prospects of bringing bingo—or other gaming activity—to the island stirred up quite a bit of conversation—some pro, some con. I don’t know whether the issue will resurface, but in case it does, I would like to hear your thoughts—Is it a good idea, bad idea, it depends, etc. Send me an email.

POA Property and Facilities Review. As I mentioned last time, the POA has begun another review of our assets with the goal of determining whether we can put our property and facilities to better use. This kind of review is done periodically and while past efforts have not produced any significant enhancements, the timing and opportunity at this point may be more auspicious. I understand that this is a controversial and potentially divisive topic, and because of that the Board will insist upon and ensure that it is carried out with complete transparency and full input and participation by the members. And keep in mind, it’s very difficult to change the nature of the way we own and manage our property. Nothing can be done—nor should be done—without a vote of the membership.

Proposed Constitutional Amendment. Your ballot this year will include an opportunity to vote for—in addition to directors—a constitutional amendment. The amendment has been approved by the Board and will be fully explained in the ballot mailing. Here’s some background. The constitution was amended in 2005 and a provision was adopted that sets a very high hurdle for actions affecting the POA property. A “super majority” of the membership must approve any long term or permanent sale, lease, or other encumbrance of the property. While we think unintended, utility easements are included in this provision. We are approached from time to time by the various utility entities regarding easements—most of which we need to grant so as not halt or slow progress. While not impossible to have a special vote of the membership for such a purpose it would be costly and unlikely that we would get the required number of participants. So we want to amend the constitution to allow easements to be granted by the Board without a vote of the membership.

Upcoming Election of Directors. Our election cycle will soon begin so I encourage all members to consider “throwing your hat in the ring” and offering your time and talent to help run the POA. As usual, we will elect three directors as the seats of Robin Linn and Bruce Thompson will expire, and we have one vacancy owing to Bill Harper’s resignation. At this point I’m not sure whether these incumbents will seek to serve an additional term, but whether they do or not, we need to field a robust slate of candidates for these important positions. To place your name on the ballot you must submit a statement of 200 words or less—such statement containing information about yourself, your background, etc. -- along with information verifying your membership in the POA. The statement may be submitted made by email and must be received not later than 5:00 PM on March 26, 2010. If you have questions about the election process, or the job itself, I’ll be happy to discuss it with you—and I’m sure other board members would also.

Communication. As I mentioned last time, we have established a website taskforce with the longer range goal of overhauling our site and building in capability to do more “real-time” functions such as reserving POA facilities, conducting opinion polls, etc. In the meantime, we’re working to keep our existing site up to date and useful. We have a pressing need to expand our email list—we have about 2500 members and only about 1200 email addresses. I know there are some members who don’t use email but I would think these days that is a small number. Emailing is not only a much faster way to communicate, but is significantly less expensive that postal mail. So please help us update the list—if you know of any members who are not getting emails, please ask them to contact us.

Isle Dauphine Clubhouse. We’re still working to bring the facility back to good operating condition and to promote it for a variety of events. We are working to post fees on the website-- but in the meantime, if you have questions or want to book the facility, please call Sussi or Katherine at the office (251/861-2343). Remember, dues paying members receive a discount!

Dues. Thanks again to all of you who have paid your dues. While not a big amount, it makes a big difference in our budget. So if you haven’t paid—please do so now, it’s not too late.

Next Meeting. Our next meeting is on Thursday, March 18^th, at 6:00PM, in the wheelhouse. Also, mark your calendar now for the annual membership meeting which will be held on May 8, 2010, at 11:00AM.

Bruce Jones
POA President

Hello everyone!  Looks like Town Hall will be converting to a four day work week effective April 1, 2010. The notice is posted below.

Hello everyone!  Below are the links that contain the information regarding scopes for work for both electrical and plumbing work required to get the West End Beach up and running for spring break.  If anyone is interested in submitting a proposal, please submit the required estimates to Town Hall by March 1, 2010.  Thank you in advance!

RFP WEST END BEACH PLUMBING.doc

RFP WEST END BEACH ELECTRICAL.doc

The Town of Dauphin Island is holding a special meeting in order to discuss the projects which will be presented for consideration to the Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources.  The request must be presented no later than Monday, March 1, 2010 in order to be included for the 2009 - 2010 projects to be awarded.

The link below contains the announcement from the Town of Dauphin Island.

Special Meeting 2010-02-25_0001.pdf

All residents and property owners are encouraged to attend.  I hope to see some of you there!

Insight: Options for an island

By Press-Register Editorial Board

February 21, 2010, 5:45PM

Dauphin Island’s beach erosion solutions

There are options when it comes

to restoring Dauphin Island

By SCOTT L. DOUGLASS 

Special to the Press-Register 

Go stand on the beach on the west end of Dauphin Island today, look south at the beautiful Gulf of Mexico, and imagine going back in time to when Alabama became a state.

Instead of being on the Gulf beach, you would have been standing in the waters of Mississippi Sound looking at the back (north) side of the Dauphin Island of 1819.

This is because the west end of the island has migrated more than 1,000 feet — more than its entire width — to the north since 1850.

Descendents of Europeans have lived on Dauphin Island for more than 300 years. But that is on the east end of the island, the "village" in the maritime forest, behind the extremely high sand dunes that protect that middle part of the island from hurricane storm surges and Gulf waves.

There is a tremendous amount of sand moving onshore from the migration of Pelican/Sand Island onto Dauphin Island near the now land-locked fishing pier and the golf course.

The same thing has probably happened for thousands of years including 150 and 300 years ago.

Meanwhile, both ends of the island have suffered from major storms and chronic erosion. The rock seawall built by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in 1906 and rebuilt in the 1990s has protected Fort Gaines from succumbing to beach erosion like Fort McRae — the fort that used to sit on the west side of Pensacola Pass.

However, there is no beach in front of the seawall around Fort Gaines, and there is severe beach erosion immediately to the west of the seawall.

A seawall is probably not desired, nor is the public expense justified, on the west end of the island.

The tremendous migration of the west end of Dauphin Island to the north since 1850 is due to two natural processes: storm overwash and inlet breach formation/healing. Both have occurred repeatedly.

Storm overwash is most obvious during hurricanes like Frederic, Georges, Ivan and Katrina, as storm surge rises to an elevation where waves roll right over the smaller dunes on the west end. However, once the dunes are flattened, the overwash occurs in much smaller storms.

The west end of the island has overwashed more than half a dozen times some years.

The overwashed sand moves into Mississippi Sound, leaving former boat docks high and dry in the sand while the Gulf beaches move permanently to the north, too. The barrier island is rolling over to the north.

There is no precedence for living on a barrier island that overwashes as frequently as the west end of Dauphin Island has been overwashing recently.

Most of us remember (just 20 years ago) when Bienville Boulevard was located on the northern portion of the west end of the island. Today, it is on the southern portion of the island near the surf. And the road location hasn’t moved: The island has rolled over it.

The road is so close to the surf today that it is essentially where the primary sand dune field should be located on the island.

The repeated breaching and healing of new inlets may be just as important for island migration in the long run. The west end of the island has been breached repeatedly over the last 300 years, including today’s "Katrina Cut" west of the end of the road.

Other similar breaches located between there and the Little Red Schoolhouse are documented in the 1850s, the 1910s, 1920s, 1930s and 1940s.

Today’s "Katrina Cut" is over a mile wide and sand is moving north into Mississippi Sound due to waves and incoming tidal currents.

While each of the previous breaches has eventually sealed itself off due to wave-driven sand transport along the beaches, the island and its Gulf beaches have re-established farther north each time.

The "Katrina Cut" may seal itself off in the next decade, but it will do so with the island and the beaches even farther north. In the meantime, it will continue to cause tremendous changes in the Mississippi Sound, including wetland losses and a decimated oyster fishery.

So, is there a solution? The so-called "FEMA berms" built twice on the west end of Dauphin Island in the last decade did not solve the problem. They cannot if the Corps of Engineers just stacks a relatively small, expensive amount of sand on the beach face.

Attempts to build something similar yet again seem misguided.

There are only three general approaches to an erosion problem such as this: retreat/abandonment, stabilizing with "hard" structures such as a seawall, or stabilizing with "soft" solutions such as beach nourishment and sand bypassing.

The recently announced federally funded studies will focus on beach nourishment — the placement of large amounts of good-quality sand on the beach to widen the beach and, in this case, establish a dune system.

Beach nourishment has worked very well for Gulf Shores and Orange Beach. Their beaches are, on average, much wider and higher than they were in 2000. The 2001 beach nourishment project in central Gulf Shores has probably paid for itself a dozen times over in reduced storm-induced damages to public and private property.

The Dauphin Island studies will determine how much sand is needed, find the most cost effective sand for nourishment, model the expected future behavior of the new sand and the environmental impacts of the project, and estimate the costs of initial construction and future maintenance.

Dr. Scott L. Douglass is professor of civil engineering at the University of South Alabama and author of "Saving America’s Beaches: the Causes of and Solutions to Beach Erosion." His e-mail address is sdouglass@usouthal.edu.

THE TOWN OF DAUPHIN ISLAND IS REQUESTING QUALIFICATIONS.
The Town of Dauphin Island is requesting "RFQ's" that provide Coastal Engineering consulting services for beach nourishment design on Dauphin Island. The "RFQ" will be accepted until February 1, 2010. Details available at Town Hall or by email.

For more information contact:  Scott L. Douglass, PhD, PE
South Coast Engineers, LLC
Fairhope, AL 36533
Phone: (251) 510-2903
scott@southcoastengineers.com

2010 DAUPHIN ISLAND GUMBO COOK OFF

PRESENTED BY DAUPHIN ISLAND CHAMBER OF COMMERCE

Saturday, April 10, 2010 – 11 a.m. – 3 p.m.

Isle Dauphine Club, 100 Orleans Drive, Dauphin Island, AL 36528

TEAM REQUIREMENTS AND GUIDELINES

1. EACH TEAM PREPAYS FOR 25 TICKETS AT $10 EACH ($250). Tickets will be mailed to you as soon as we receive your Team Registration Form and $250 payment. Teams can either re-sell the tickets to recoup their money or give the tickets away. Teams must not exceed four (4) members and the competition is open to all, including individuals and restaurants. Team members will receive Chef Passes for the event. Tents and electricity will be provided and teams will provide their own tables and other set up requirements.

2. COOK A MINIMUM OF 5 GALLONS OF GUMBO. All gumbo prep and cooking, including roux, must be done on site. All chopping must be done on site except commercially available pre-chopped items which will be allowed. Provide your own cooker, utensils and ingredients. NOTE: Some ingredients may be made available to teams at a reduced cost or no charge through requested sponsorships…watch for updates regarding these sponsorships. Serving bowls and spoons will be provided. Please use a 1.5 oz or a 2 oz ladle to help the gumbo last throughout the event.

3. HEALTH DEPARTMENT REQUIREMENTS. At least one member of each team must have a Food Handler’s Card issued by the Mobile County Health Department. Food Handler classes are held at the Health Department three times each week. For information or questions regarding the Food Handler Card/classes, call Janice Spangler at (251)690-8149. Teams will also be responsible for complying with all other applicable Health Department requirements for the Gumbo Cook Off.

4. CATEGORIES. The Gumbo Cook Off categories are: “Seafood” and “Other”, such as vegetarian, chicken, sausage, wild game, etc.

Please complete the attached form and return with $250 payment to:

Kathryn Carver, Event Chair

P. O. Box 3

Dauphin Island, Alabama 36528

Phone: (251) 490-0294 Fax: (866) 451-4114 (toll free)

E-mail: kcarver@thewarmwelcome.com

MAKE CHECKS PAYABLE TO: Dauphin Island Chamber of Commerce

PLEASE RETAIN A COPY OF THE ABOVE INFORMATION
2010 DAUPHIN ISLAND GUMBO COOK OFF

REGISTRATION FORM

Company or Team Name (Please be specific - This name will appear on all posters, etc)

____________________________________________________________________

Address _______________________________________ Phone __________________

City ______________________________________State ________ Zip _____________

Fax __________________________

Send completed form and $250 payment to:

Kathryn Carver, Event Chair, P. O. Box 3, Dauphin Island, AL 36528

OFFICE USE ONLY

DATE REGISTRATION FORM / PAYMENT RECEIVED: _______________

TICKETS MAILED: __________________

Hello everyone!  The Town of Dauphin Island is getting ready to move the displaced sand back onto the beach.  As a result, executed right of entry forms are required for owners who located south of Bienville Boulevard and west of Raphael Semmes.  I have cut and pasted the form below.  If anyone needs a form to be emailed to them, please contact me via email and I will be more than happy to send one in Word form for your use.  Thank you!

_________________________________________________________________

The Town of Dauphin Island has mailed the attached letter and right of entry form to the property owners on the south side of Bienville Blvd. from Rapheal Semmes west.  We need the Right of Entry forms back as soon as possible to start the contractors placing sand back on the south side of the properties.  Please contact your rental properties and have them sign and email, fax or drop off the forms at their earliest.

So sorry to hear about this!

_________________________________________________________________

Pelicans killed by extreme cold; some may have huddled together to stay warm

By Ben Raines

January 12, 2010, 3:24PM

View full size(Courtesy U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service)Pete Tuttle, a biologist with the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, makes notes near a group of dead juvenile pelicans found on Sand Island this week. Some of the coastal birds may have been huddling together behind a sand dune to try to stay warm in the extreme cold.
The bodies of more than 100 pelicans and other birds were found on Sand Island this week when the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service followed up on a tip from the public.

View full size(Courtesy U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service)A dead pelican with an identification tag is seen on Sand Island off the coast of Alabama. Wildlife officials believe it likely was a victim of the extreme cold temperatures in the Deep South.Biologists believe the birds were killed by the extreme cold. Some appeared to have been dead for as long as two weeks, while others had been dead for a day or two, according to officials.

Five birds were sent to the U.S. Geological Survey National Wildlife Health Center in Madison, Wis., for necropsies to pinpoint the cause of death.

The carcasses were all located around the southern tip of Sand Island, which is now a peninsula attached to Dauphin Island on the Alabama coast.

Photos provided by Fish & Wildlife officials show the birds heaped behind small sand dunes as if they died while huddling together to escape cold north winds. All of the pelicans in the photographs appeared to be juvenile birds.

"Local residents tell us it's not uncommon for juvenile birds to die in colder temperatures. But a mortality rate this high is too unusual to be ignored," said Pete Tuttle, a federal biologist.

Most of the dead animals were pelicans, though a few least terns died as well, according to officials.

The Press-Register has also received reports of fish kills, primarily involving mullet, in Dog River and Halls Mill Creek. Fish kills have occurred around Mobile Bay during extreme cold weather several times in the last 10 years. 

View full size(Courtesy U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service)Two U.S. Fish and Wildlife biologists examine a dead pelican found this week on Sand Island near Dauphin Island, Ala. The large coastal birds likely were killed by sub-freezing temperatures along the coast in the past week.

© 2010 al.com. All rights reserved.

New Dauphin Island well will provide better water, say officials

By Gary McElroy

January 08, 2010, 5:02AM

DAUPHIN ISLAND, Ala. -- Dauphin Island water will taste better and there will be more of it, town officials said Wednesday, thanks to a nearly $7 million capital improvement project.

Nearly three-fourths of the funds for the project comes from the Alabama Department of Environmental Management and federal monies under the auspices of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. The town will pay the rest over 20 years at 3.5 percent interest, said Vaile Feemster, manager of the island's Water and Sewer Authority.

Improvements will include a new water treatment plant and a new 547-foot-deep well, according to a town news release.

Following a groundbreaking ceremony Wednesday, Feemster said new water mains will run to the east and west end of the island, providing more and better fire protection to the town's estimated 2,000 customers.

As for drinking water, Feemster said it has always been safe, but "not always pleasing to the palate" based on salt content.

Chlorides, dissolved salts, will be reduced by 90 percent, according to a water and sewer authority news release.

In addition to improved taste, Feemster said, water production will increase from 650,000 gallons a day to 1.3 million gallons daily -- nearly doubling the town's capacity.

Feemster said large annual gatherings, such as the Alabama Deep Sea Fishing Rodeo, have in the past put a strain on water capacity.

Feemster said the project will encompass the latest "green" elements, including insulation, lighting, sound reduction and dozens of other improvements guarding against various kinds of pollution and assuring state-of-the-art energy efficiency.

© 2010 al.com. All rights reserved.

Dauphin Island

PROPERTY OWNERS ASSOCIATION

P.O. Box 39 (251)861-2343

Dauphin Island, AL 36528 dipoaoffice@skyynett.com

January 4, 2010

Dear Dauphin Island Property Owners,

Special thanks to our Dauphin Island Property owners’ volunteers! Thank you so much for all of your hard work and to bear witness to your passion of the Isle Dauphine Club House. It was an unexpected perk and we never could have asked for more dedicated volunteers.

Volunteers don't necessarily have the time, but they have the heart. The gift of time is priceless and those who can help us again on January 10, 2010 between the hours of 12 till 5pm will be able to enjoy refreshments, not to mention the chance to reminisce of their memories of the Isle Dauphine of day past!

Hope to see you there.

Sincerely

DIPOA Staff

Representative Spencer Collier
Town Hall Meeting - January 4, 2009 at 6PM
Dauphin Island Town Hall
Public Welcome


*Town Council agenda meeting will take place at 7pm

WANDA M. SANDAGGER

BUILDING DEPT. ADMIN. ASST.

TOWN OF DAUPHIN ISLAND

1011 BIENVILLE BLVD

DAUPHIN ISLAND, AL 36528

251-861-5525 TEL

251-861-2154 FAX

WSANDAGGER@TOWNOFDAUPHINISLAND.ORG

With past berms wiped away, $1.5 million to be spent on Dauphin Island beach study

By Gary McElroy

December 22, 2009, 6:45AM

(Press-Register) DAUPHIN ISLAND, Ala. -- A $1.5 million congressional appropriation gave Dauphin Island a positive surge Monday in its efforts to shore up its precarious west end.

U.S. Rep. Jo Bonner, R-Mobile: "Dauphin Island's role in shielding coastal areas from the brunt of storms is one that we can no longer afford to take for granted."The money sought by U.S. Rep. Jo Bonner, R-Mobile, will fund a study of stabilizing beach erosion.

The study, headed by Scott Douglass, a professor at the University of South Alabama and a noted coastal engineer, will go a long way, both men said Monday, in addressing erosion problems that plague the island.

"Dauphin Island's role in shielding coastal areas from the brunt of storms is one that we can no longer afford to take for granted," Bonner said.

The island serves as a natural shield for south Mobile County by reducing high water and wave intensity during major storms.

If this protection were to be jeopardized, so too would be that for estuaries, marshes, oyster beds and inland homes and development, Dauphin Island Mayor Jeff Collier said.

The west end breach has been cited by fishermen as one of the causes of higher salinity in the Mississippi Sound, leading to an increase in predatory snails -- oyster drills -- that have decimated area oyster reefs, Collier said.

Bonner said that action to rebuild the natural barrier and stabilize erosion was a good investment for people of the island and coastal areas of the county.
       
"We cannot control the frequency or intensity of future storms, but we can better utilize natural protections, such as our barrier islands, to lessen the severity of local destruction," he said.
      
The study will consider beach nourishment as an answer, Douglass said, pointing out that both Orange Beach and Gulf Shores have succeeded in stabilizing their coastlines through sand replenishment.

The congressional funding, Douglass said, will help determine whether such beach nourishment can solve some of the island's problems.

Douglass said he envisions one solution incorporating "large amounts of sand -- millions of cubic yards" being taken from deposits now sitting in huge quantities offshore in the Gulf of Mexico, not far south of the island.
 

Dauphin Island

PROPERTY OWNERS ASSOCIATION

P.O. Box 39 (251)861-2343

Dauphin Island, AL 36528 dipoaoffice@skyynett.com

Thursday, December 03, 2009

Dear Dauphin Island Property Owners,

A special thanks goes out our Dauphin Island Property owners’ volunteers Deb Coffee, Vicki Helm and Jack Gaines Sr.! Thank you so much for all of your hard work and to bear witness to your passion of the Isle Dauphine Club House. It was an unexpected perk and we never could have asked for more dedicated volunteers. Words cannot express how grateful we are to have you here. It is a pleasure and a privilege to work with you.

The key to our success with the cleanup of the club house rests in people like you. Thanks for your inspiring dedication and tremendous example to the Island. Our work is not finished, it has just started.

Volunteers don't necessarily have the time, but they have the heart. The gift of time is priceless and those who can help us again on December 6, 2009 between the hours of 1 till 5pm will be able to enjoy refreshments, not to mention the chance to reminisce of their memories of the Isle Dauphine of day past!

Hope to see you there….Happy Holidays!!!

Sincerely

DIPOA Staff

Hello everyone... below is the monthly newsletter from the DIPOA president.  Bill Harper announced his resignation which went into effect that day.  By election of the Board, Bruce Jones accepted the responsibility of President.  Below is his newsletter to the membership.

_________________________________________________________________

Dauphin Island Property Owner’s Association

November 2009 Newsletter

You will notice that the newsletter has a new author—I'm Bruce Jones, now serving as your president. At the November board meeting, then President Bill Harper submitted his resignation. I was elected president and Jay Minus, vice president. I will take this opportunity to say a well deserved “Thank You” to Bill for his energetic leadership. His presence will be missed but we wish him well in his new “retirement” status. Following are items of interest to the membership.

Communication—we are working hard to improve our communication processes. Our website is being updated with current and accurate information and we have begun a process of completely overhauling our site so that it can be updated more readily and contain more sophisticated features and capabilities. Stay tuned. Also, we are continuously working to improve the accuracy and completeness of our e-mail list. If you have changed e-mail addresses, or if for any reason you suspect that we don't have your correct address, please contact us. Also, if you are aware of other members who are not being reached by our mailings, please suggest that they contact us. We are serious about getting our mailing list in order and need everyone’s help.

Tropical Storm Ida While it didn't seem like much of a storm down in “the woods”, we nonetheless experienced serious beach erosion and washover on the west end. There was minimal structural damage, but the sand loss continues to burden the west end owners –particularly those south of Bienville. The board passed a resolution instructing the president to send the Mayor a letter requesting that every effort be made to restore the sand to where it came from, and if any bulk depositing of returned sand is necessary, to favor locations to the east, rather than the west, so as to be advantaged by the natural littirio flow. We also offered to assist the town in obtaining right of entry permission if needed. The letter was presented last Monday evening at the agenda meeting, and a copy will be posted on the DIPOA website.

Litigation Status The settlement proposal for the Corp of Engineers lawsuit is still under review by Judge Futey. Following the initial briefs by counsel for both sides, the judge asked for additional briefs to respond to three specific issues which were apparently important to him. Briefs have been filed in response to those issues and additional information from Mr. Graves, et al, has been allowed to be submitted. So at this point all we can say is that Judge Futey appears to be actively and thoroughly reviewing the case, but there’s no way to predict just when we'll have a ruling. The filed documents are being posted on our website.

Isle Dauphine Clubhouse The board has decided not to continue the exclusive arrangement with MMEP, but will seek to broaden use of the facility by making it available to members for various events throughout the year. All of the arrangements are not yet worked out so stay tuned for more detail. In the meantime, if you do have an event ahead for which you would like to use the facility, contact our office and we will provide as much information as is currently available. Keep in mind, there will be a charge for using the facility, but dues paying members will receive a special discount.

Board Vacancy We have a vacancy on the board and are in need of someone to fill the remainder of the term ending in May 2010. At that time the interim member could run for election to a normal three year term. If you would like to be considered for this position, please contact a board member, and/or send me a brief bio.

Next Meeting As is customary, the board will not have a regularly scheduled meeting in December. Next scheduled meeting will be Jan 21 2010 at 6:00 PM, at the clubhouse.

I would like to join the other board members in wishing all of you a safe and enjoyable holiday season. Please feel free to call on any of us if we can be of assistance. We welcome your comments, suggestions, ideas, and criticisms.

Bruce Jones

DIPOA President

We have received notification that Alabama Power will be shutting down power to Dauphin Island on Monday, November 23, 2009 from the hours of 7:00 AM to 12:00 NOON.  If a rain date is required, the maintenance will be performed on Tuesday, November 24.

Hello everyone!  The Town of Dauphin Island acted quickly to get Bienville Boulevard cleared for vehicle passage and will be clearing Sehoy and Island Shore in the next couple of days.  I was able to make it down to the end by the West End Beach with no problems.  The police checkpoint remains located at Raphael Semmes however.  Contractors are now allowed to begin repair work but only if they have the proper permitting in place available through Town Hall.

While I was out photographing Bienville Boulevard, I happened to meet up with Jeff Collier, Mayor and Corey Moore, Building Inspector.  It appears FEMA will hopefully make a decision next week regarding whether or not to declare the Alabama coastline a disaster area.  The threshold for funds becoming available is $5 million in damage.  The mayor estimates Dauphin Island to bear approximately $4 million in damage and we are not sure of the damages incurred along Baldwin County's beaches.  We do know that the Gulf State Pier in Gulf Shores took on some damage but to what monetary extent is not known at this time.  Should FEMA not provide assistance, then the repairs will be the Town's responsibility for the repairs to the damage.  Those two scenario's will have separate consequences.  If we are afforded funds by FEMA, then the government "calls the shots" on what is done, how the sand is treated and where the sand will be placed.  And if the Town (and it's citizens) bear the responsibility, the sand will end up where the Town decides.  Both Jeff Collier and Corey Moore indicated they wish to put the sand back on the beach.

Here are some photos I took of Bienville Boulevard on 11-15-09.  I'll be posting more updates this coming week.